Observations from the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Copernicus Sentinel-5P satellite indicate the ozone hole reached approximately 10 million square miles (26 million square kilometers) in area on Sept. 16, 2023 — making it one of the largest seasonal holes ever observed.
Ozone is a naturally occurring gas, and there’s a layer of it in the stratosphere that protects us from the sun’s ultraviolet, or UV, rays.
The ozone hole still grows and shrinks seasonally, however, due to temperature changes and wind conditions in the stratosphere, reaching a maximum between mid-September and mid-October.
One possible reason for the higher-than-normal growth is the Hunga Tonga volcanic eruption in January 2022, which introduced massive quantities of water vapor into the air.
“The water vapor could have led to the heightened formation of polar stratospheric clouds, where chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) can react and accelerate ozone depletion," said Inness.
“Based on the Montreal Protocol and the decrease of anthropogenic ozone-depleting substances, scientists currently predict that the global ozone layer will reach its normal state again by around 2050,” said Claus Zehner, ESA’s mission manager for Copernicus Sentinel-5P.
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Observations from the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Copernicus Sentinel-5P satellite indicate the ozone hole reached approximately 10 million square miles (26 million square kilometers) in area on Sept. 16, 2023 — making it one of the largest seasonal holes ever observed.
Ozone is a naturally occurring gas, and there’s a layer of it in the stratosphere that protects us from the sun’s ultraviolet, or UV, rays.
The ozone hole still grows and shrinks seasonally, however, due to temperature changes and wind conditions in the stratosphere, reaching a maximum between mid-September and mid-October.
One possible reason for the higher-than-normal growth is the Hunga Tonga volcanic eruption in January 2022, which introduced massive quantities of water vapor into the air.
“The water vapor could have led to the heightened formation of polar stratospheric clouds, where chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) can react and accelerate ozone depletion," said Inness.
“Based on the Montreal Protocol and the decrease of anthropogenic ozone-depleting substances, scientists currently predict that the global ozone layer will reach its normal state again by around 2050,” said Claus Zehner, ESA’s mission manager for Copernicus Sentinel-5P.
The original article contains 340 words, the summary contains 180 words. Saved 47%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!